Furnace



INVENTOR y. FM@ 1m A WITNESSES:

` plete disclosure of the present embodiment Patented Mar. 19, 1929.

UNITEDl STA-'IES PATENT oFFlCE.-

JoIIN r. BAKER, or IrANsEIELD, oHIo, AssIGNoE rro- WEs'rINe'HoUsE ELECTRIC .e MANUFACTURING COMPANY, `AscoIwonATIoN or PENNSYLVANIA.

FURNACE.

Application inea my 27, 1926'. seran Nb. 125,141.

My invention relates to furnaces and particularly to rotary furnaces having automatic dumping means."

An object of my invention is to provide an efiicient means for automatically effecting the discharge of material from a furnace.

Another object of my invention is to pro-y vlde, 1n a rotary furnace, stationary means" for periodically causing the .discharge of lheat-treated material therefrom. I

Other' objects of my invention will be apparent from the disclosure.

In the present embodiment of my inven-4 tion, l provide, in a furnace having a conveyor with hearth-trays pivoted thereon, a continuous track having a raised portion o posite the discharge outlet. The free edges of the trays engage the track, and the trays are successively tilted by the raised portion of the track when they arrive opposite to the discharge outlet. j

y In' the drawing, Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional vielv of a furnace embodying my invention; an

Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line II-II of F1 1.

Referring tothe drawing for a more com of my "inventioman annular furnace'lO comprises inner and outer casings 11 and12 be tween which are positioned walls 1,3 of re fractory insulating material. Thewalls- 13 enclose a chamber 15 of annular shape. A plurality of heating elements 17 are located in the chamber and secured to the walls thereof and are adapted to be connected to a suitable source of electric energy. A circular run-way or passage-way 2O is formed in the,

bottom of the furnace, opening at itsl top into the chamber 15 and'adapted to receive an annular conveyor 22.

The annular conveyor l22 comprises a re fractory insulating portion I24 that -fissupv yported by a-bottom member 25. rlhe contrack 27 by means of wheels 29 that are-rotat-l veyor 22 is rotatably supported on a circular abl mounted on bearing members 30, shown as ein integral 'with' the member- 25. i

A p urality of hearth-tray supporting members 32y are secured to the topl of the insulating portion 24 of the conveyor 22. Each support 32 has a hearth tra 33 pivoted to its outer edge by means of 't e pivot pin 34. The hearth-trays 33 kare preferably Wider than the support 32 to permit a flange mem- 'tical s ber 36 to be secured atthe bottom of the tray.

Each flange member has rollers 38 mounted lthereon and these rollers engage a stationary circular track 40 that is secured to the'- bottom of the heating 'chamber 15near its inner wall.J The track 4() has a raised portion or ramp 41 that is positioned opposite to a dischargeoutlet 43. The discharge outlet 43 has its outer end extending into oil or other sealing material in the quench tank 45. The edges of the bottom member 25 of the conveyor 22 are 'provided with concentric annular channel members 47 and 48, The channel members are adapted to contain sand or other sealing material. (1o-operating respectively with the channel members 47 and 48 are a pair ofconcentric circular flange mem b ers 49 and 5() secured to the bottom of the furnace and having depending port-ions imvmersed in the sand of the channel members gear wheel 53 and a shaft 54 therefor that lis l rotatably mounted in a bearing member 55.

Theopposite end of the shaft 54 is keyed to i a bevel Agear wheel 56 that meshes with \a bevel gear wheel 57 which is keyed to a veraftQO having suitable bearings 61 and 62 and being held in position by means of a collar 63.

A bevel gear wheel-65 is keyed to the upper end of the shaft 60 and meshes with a bevel of the wor gear 6,8. Y.

Fromthe `foregoing description, it will be apparent that, when the shaft 69 is rotated byla motor which receives energy from a suita e source, the shaft 60 will be driven and will, in turn, drive the shaft 54 whichfbyl u means of gear wheelbS-and rack 52, will drive theY conveyor, 22. 'lheconveyor will,1 therefore, rotate within the passage-way 20. d

Rotation'of the vconveyor 22 causes the trays 33 to travel through the annular chamber 15. The rollers 38 of the trays yV33 will roll along Ythe track 40 and, when a tray 33 arrives op posite to the discharge o'utlet43, the rollers 38 will engage the raised portion ofthe f track 40and thus cause the tray 33 to be l tilted about its pivot 34.

In the case of a heat-treating furnace, material that has been placed on the tray to be' heat vtreated Will pass through the annular vchamber 15. The speed of rotationof the conveyor 22 may be so determined by choice of proper gear Wheels as to insure that the material on eachtray Will be heat-treated for the proper length of time.. -When a tray arrives opposite the discharge outlet 43 and 1s tilted in the manner lheretofore described,

material thereon will lie-discharged through the outlet 43 intothe quench tank 45. As is apparent from the description, the conveyor 22 will be-rotated continuously and my automatic dumping means'is particularly useful I inV a rotary furnaceof this type.

However, it is, of course, obvious that such dumping means could be used if the conveyor were operated intermittently. lt is also ob- `vious that this dumping means could he employed in connection with a conveyor of clongated, or of other shape.

While I have shown and described, for purposes of illustration, a particular form of my invention, it may, of course, be embodied in other forms Without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination with a heat-treating furnace having an annular heating chamber, of a rotary conveyor havinga plurality of tiltable material-receiving trays and adapted to move said trays through'said chamber,

means for continuously drivin said conveyor, and a ramp for periodica ly and successively engaging said trays to cause them to tilt and discharge heattreated material therefrom, said trays being brought into operative engagement with said ramp by the rotation of said conveyor.

2. The combination with. a heat-treating furnace having an annular heating chamber, of a rotary conveyor having a plurality-of pivotally mounted material-receiving trays thereon, means for continuously driving said conveyor, said conveyor being adapted to move said trays through said chamber, an annular track having a raised portion in said chamber, each of said trays being provided with roller means at its free edge for engaging said track, whereby the rotation of said conveyor will bring' the roller means of theV In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 13 day of July, 1926.V

JOHN F. BAKER. 

